Panthers notes: Refs in spotlight late

Sunday

Oct 21, 2012 at 12:01 AMOct 21, 2012 at 11:11 PM

CHARLOTTE — Guess you could say the honeymoon is over for NFL officials who came in for the replacement officials last month — at least if you ask Carolina Panthers fans following Sunday’s 19-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

Three decisions in the final 2:11 of the contest had fans voicing their displeasure at Bank of America Stadium — and their opinions were supported by at least some in the Carolina locker room.

Richard Walker

CHARLOTTE — Guess you could say the honeymoon is over for NFL officials who came in for the replacement officials last month — at least if you ask Carolina Panthers fans following Sunday’s 19-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

Three decisions in the final 2:11 of the contest had fans voicing their displeasure at Bank of America Stadium — and their opinions were supported by at least some in the Carolina locker room.

The three decisions came during a four-play stretch that all but assured the Cowboys’ victory.

Leading 16-14 with 2:11 to play, Dallas was caught off guard by the Panthers’ attempt to quick snap a fourth-and-two play from the Carolina 39. With as many as 18 Cowboys running on and off the field, game officials threw two flags and gave Dallas a timeout.

“I was on their sideline,” Panther receiver Brandon LaFell said. “As I’m running my route, all I hear is ‘Timeout! Timeout! Timeout!’ and the ball has already been snapped. It’s crazy. Two referees on their sideline threw flags and they gave them a timeout.”

“I got pushed in the back and it was early — and I didn’t get the call,” Murphy said.

Two plays later — and with Carolina trying to stop the Cowboys quickly in order to regain possession — Panthers linebacker James Anderson was flagged for a personal foul horse collar penalty that gave Dallas a first down and better field position for a field goal four plays later that accounted for the final margin.

Replays clearly showed Anderson’s hand underneath Dallas running back Phillip Tanner’s facemask and in front of the shoulder pads — and not grabbing the collar of Tanner’s jersey.

“Reality is what they called it,” Anderson said. “That’s what they saw and they made the call.”

And while one could make a case that had all three calls gone the Panthers’ way, the team still would have lost, it’s quite obvious they prevented Carolina from at least having a better opportunity for a late-game comeback.

But according to quarterback Cam Newton, his team shouldn’t have put such power in the hands of officials in the first place.

“We’ve got to take the officials out of the game,” Newton said. “There was ample opportunities for us to do what we had to do.”

Adams was inactive for the third straight game after he fumbled a punt and a kickoff in the 36-7 home loss against the New York Giants on Sept. 20.

… Smith’s streak

When Smith caught a pass for no gain on the first play of Sunday’s game, it extended his streak of catching at least one pass to 81 games.

That streak began with the 2006 finale.

… Penalty plague

The Panthers had been one of the least penalized teams in the league until Sunday’s nine flags for 71 yards — and rookie guard Amini Silatolu got flagged twice.

Once, Silatolu was penalized for holding and another time, he was flagged for a false start. The two penalties make the rookie the most penalized player on the team with five flags this season. Two other players have three penalties (Steve Smith, Josh Norman).

… Cam numbers

While few can question Cam Newton’s wondrous talents, there are three statistical numbers than continue spiraling in negative fashion for the second-year quarterback.

Though he only threw one interception — in the end zone in the second quarter — Carolina is now 0-11 in games in Newton’s career in which he’s thrown even a single interception.

Newton’s 64 yards on six carries made him the Panthers’ leading rusher, but Carolina is a mere 1-6 when he has that distinction.

And Sunday’s loss after Carolina had taken a 14-13 lead early in the fourth quarter means the Panthers have blown six fourth-quarter leads in his tenure with the team.

… Attendance note

The 73,981 attendance at Sunday’s game was the highest home attendance in four years.

The all-time home record is 76,136 against the 49ers in 1995 at Clemson, with the Bank of America Stadium record of 74,113 coming against the Buccaneers in 2008.